Use this brief
Research [subject] to answer [central question] for [audience]. Return a dated timeline, named people and institutions, claim-to-source notes, disputed or uncertain points, quotable material with exact provenance, pronunciation notes, and visual opportunities. Do not convert inference into fact.
Required inputs
- Topic, central question, audience, target runtime, and editorial angle
- Source inclusion and exclusion rules, preferred languages, and research cutoff date
- Sensitivity, rights, living-person, cultural, or geopolitical constraints
- The decision this research must enable in the story blueprint
Editorial structure
- 1
Write a five-sentence orientation covering what happened, where, when, who, and why it matters.
- 2
Build a dated timeline containing only events that affect the story argument.
- 3
Create a claim ledger with source, evidence strength, uncertainty, and exact wording limits.
- 4
Separate primary evidence, reliable secondary synthesis, interpretation, and unsupported anecdotes.
- 5
List visual evidence and reconstruction opportunities without treating generated imagery as proof.
Acceptance checks
- Open every source and confirm it supports the attached claim.
- Record publication date, author or institution, title, URL, and access date.
- Flag source disagreement, translation ambiguity, missing context, and evidence gaps.
- Exclude fabricated quotes, unattributed statistics, and claims copied from search snippets.
Visual direction
Research should identify places, objects, processes, maps, and documented visual constraints, not prescribe unsupported spectacle.
Narration direction
The research brief is not narration. Keep language literal, sourced, and easy for a writer to interrogate.
Evidence and next steps
Complete Onira Studio films are first-party product evidence, not customer case studies or guarantees of factual accuracy, publication acceptance, retention, or revenue.
Questions
Is Onira's research assistance a customer-facing citation system?
No. Research assistance supports production, but creators must maintain and verify their own claim-to-source record before publishing.
How many sources should a documentary use?
There is no universal number. Use enough independent, appropriate sources to support the claims and resolve material uncertainty without padding the bibliography.